Finding your way over the flu landscape

The swine flu outbreak has put an extra strain on travelers. Here are some things you need to know about the situation and how it affects you.

*Keep current. Go to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Web page cdc.gov/swineflu for basic information on symptoms and updates.

*If you have a trip planned to Mexico, check with your airline to see whether you can reschedule if that's what you want to do. Airlines sometimes can be lenient for travel problems such as these.

*Consider your overall health. The CDC Traveler's Health Web site (cdc.gov/health) urges people heading to Mexico from the U.S. who are at high risk of severe illness from influenza (the elderly or those with chronic conditions such as diabetes or lung or heart disease) to take antiviral medications for prevention of swine flu during travel. Read the CDC's travel health precautions page (see above) for more information about antiviral chemoprophylaxis.

*If you're traveling internationally, you may be screened and you may have to observe certain precautions. Passengers returning from Mexico and some parts of the U.S. to London's Heathrow Airport should monitor their health closely, the airport's Web site says. Mexico's secretary of health is discouraging people from shaking hands or kissing, and is asking people to observe at least 6 feet of personal space. Visitors entering to Russia, Hong Kong and Taiwan will be quarantined if they show symptoms, The Associated Press reported.